I want to be a cowboy...baby!

Christopher got to go horseback riding in Flagstaff this past weekend. The horse was named Ahab, and the guide put his own hat on Christopher for the ride. Christopher had a really good time!

Happy Birthday to Matt

Matt's 34th birthday was July 9th. We got together with his parents and his sister's family to celebrate the day. Christopher helped his cousin Angie put the candles on Daddy's birthday cake.

Then he helped him blow the candles out.

And since he is getting on in years, Matt also needed help unwrapping his presents. Christopher was so excited that kept singing Happy Birthday to Matt and also telling everyone that it was his birthday too. Matt got a super soaker water gun from the nephews for use in the pool. It's getting well-used!

Finally

Christopher is starting to be more interested in trying to dress himself - part of the 2 1/2 year old "I can do it myself" phase, which is loads of fun (sometimes). He actually did get that shoe on completely by himself. And he was very proud.


We are finally getting some rain. This was the first we had received in months. Christopher and I got out our umbrella, shook the dust off, and walked to the mailbox. The picture is kind of dark, but he had taken over possession of the umbrella (once again, "I can do it myself!") and so I was sheltering on the porch.

June - part 3

Yep, you should scroll down to part 1 if you're just starting. I didn't turn my brain back on before posting these pictures and I should have done it backwards!
Post trek:

Hanging out with Hannah in the new backyard grass:


Trying on "big boy" underwear for the first time:


Although he looks like he's posing, he was actually telling me to cut the tag out of the back. Underwear models are so sensitive...

June - part 2

Christopher also went to the lake and dug under rocks with a stick...


and looked for ladybugs in the grass with Grandma. He had a great time while we were trekking.


So did we for the most part - except for when Emily's foot very nearly got run over by a handcart wheel. Luckily the wheel didn't roll all the way over or we're pretty sure something would have broken. As it was, it merely got really squished. Could have been worse!

June

A little over a month ago, Matt & Emily went on a pioneer trek with youth from church. You can't see us, but here are some of the kdis from our group pulling the handcart. This was an easy stretch of the trek, flat with no rocks. It wasn't all like that. We'll have more pictures of that later!


While we were gone Christopher went up to Flagstaff with Grandma & Grandpa Truitt and experienced the joy of being the center of the universe when Dara and the cousins arrived. He got to: Watch movies with Aaron...


...see deer and goats and peacocks at the deer farm...


...go horseback riding for the first time...Grandma says he was a natural...


...and go bowling for the first time...I think a contraption like that would help my score significantly...

Progress of a Yard

Yard prepped: raked, rolled, ready for curbing.

Curbing.

Sod laid. Still looking a little bit like patchwork.

3 weeks later. The lawn's first haircut.

A little bit of perspective on the layout of the yard now. And Matt jumped right into the pool after mowing the lawn. It's pretty hot here now. I think our temps for the week will average 111. Because of that, it looks like we'll be waiting until October to put in the plants and rock around the outside.

Driving the fire engine. He was very interested in the firefighters who were standing off to the side.


When the clown asked him what balloon shape he wanted, Christopher immediately said he wanted an elephant. Then she asked the color and without hesitation he said "Blue!" And there's Grandma Nell. :)


Waiting in line with Grandpa to get on the train. He was being tickled, but still was maintaining the "you can't make me smile" line of thinking.


Ah ha! Grandpa won the prize! Maybe Christopher just didn't want to smile at the camera, but Grandpa still managed to get him to laugh for the profile shot on Grandma's lap.


We are working on the "waif" look. How do you think it's coming along?

Trip to Thomas

Last weekend we went to Flagstaff with Grandma & Grandpa Truitt & Grandma Nell to see Thomas the Tank Engine. Here is a slight glimpse of Thomas. Christopher did enjoy seeing that. We couldn't really get much closer since people were waiting to board the train.

Christopher was slightly overwhelmed. We couldn't get a single smiling picture, but he wasn't crying! Here is the hay maze.


He got a temporary "tattoo" of Thomas on his hand, which Grandpa helped him display for the camera. Still no smile.

There was an ambulance that he got to climb around in. You must look stoic when on an ambulance.

He also liked climbing up onto the fire engine. Really. He did.

Don't these two good-looking guys look cool? Christopher was helping Daddy back his truck out on his way to work and just had to have sunglasses on too.


Christopher is getting pretty good at the act of sharing. These are toy Easter eggs. The cat wanted them on his back and Christopher obliged. Then Christopher actually asked me to take a picture of it. He was so proud of himself. The cat is currently working on his application for sainthood.

Just some cute stuff

Christopher got a "fire engine hat" a couple of weeks ago. He was trying to convince me that it looked so cute on him that he should get to wear it to bed.

Even a 2-year old has got to earn his keep somehow! Actually, he seriously wanted to vacuum. I had pulled it out and he managed to turn it on and start working. Good kid.

This was simply a cute smile. He was showing his Big Bird and Cookie Monster dolls to the cat (the tip of whose tail is visible right at the bottom center of the picture - it's grey, hard to see).

At the Renaissance Festival with our little friend Hannah. As we walked in we passed a chocolate shop offering free popsicle sticks dipped in melted chocolate.....

Christopher just had to stop and visit "Mother Goose" at the festival. He walked right up to the bench, sat down and let the goose sit on his lap. He was giving it hugs and the whole scene was so cute that people behind us were taking pictures of him.

A Typical Day

When Daddy gets home, it's time to head to the bed for play time! First, Christopher needs to warm up by flexing his muscles.

Then a little bit of upside down time to stretch those legs.

Then it's Daddy's turn for a workout by doing a few "boy lifts" and some mind-to-mind connecting with his son.

Then we hand Christopher over to his mama for some tickle time.

The next day Christopher decides that Pooter was left out of all the fun and needs to play with the newspaper ads - just for a change of pace.

Taking it easy...

There is nothing quite as relaxing as "reading" the Sunday comics after church while waiting for your lunch to be prepared.

On the go

These are not the "smiliest" pictures of Christopher we've ever been able to get, but he's at the stage where he doesn't like to hold still for long - or follow directions like "smile!" But they capture the essence of what we've been up to in the past week or so.

Christopher loves to bring a couple of stuffed animals with him when we go for walks. He likes to make sure they are safely buckled in on the other seat of the wagon.


He likes to help Dad get ready to leave for work. Christopher does the "quality control checks" and makes sure that the engine revs just right and that the horn button still works on Dad's motorcycle.


Last week we met up with Mema and cousin Austin at the zoo. We couldn't get any pictures of him in front of any of the animals, but he & Austin had a great time climbing up on things. This is a bench just inside the entrance of the zoo.


This is a huge stone frog by the jungle part of the zoo. Christopher didn't really feel like looking at the camera, but Austin was still trying to get him to smile.


Christopher loved the playground section of the zoo. This is a slide that is shaped like a huge saguaro. He enjoys slides and had to go down this one several times before he was satisfied.